PESC Overview
Core Leaders
Stephen Seliger, MD, MS
Phone: 410-605-7000 ext. 55231
Email: sseliger@som.umaryland.edu
Jennifer Albrecht, PhD
Phone: 410-706-0071
Email: jalbrecht@som.umaryland.edu
Overview
The goal of the PESC is to provide critical initial funding for pilot and exploratory studies that advance the UM-OAICs goal of accelerating the study of enablement in older adults by: 1) identifying the mechanisms that underly functional impairments associated with suddenly occurring and chronic disabling diseases in older people; 2)developing novel and efficacious interventions that target these mechanisms and produce clinically relevant outcomes; and 3) promote the training of the next generation of investigators who will further the understanding of the aging process and develop interventions to promote enablement and independence in older adults with disabling conditions. These will be accomplished through the following specific aims:
Solicit and select high quality, innovative pilot and exploratory studies (PES).
- Identify talented and committed early-stage and established investigators new to aging research from a broad range of disciplines who are interested in conducting pilot studies that support the overall UM-OAIC goals and to advance their research careers in aging.
- Support the development of rigorously designed pilot study proposals in consultation with Research Design Studios which will provide methodological expertise specific to each proposal.
- Through a process of rigorous peer review, select high quality pilot and exploratory studies with the potential to acquire key preliminary data necessary to support successful applications for extramural funding.
Leverage PESC and UM-OAIC resources to support the successful initiation and conduct of innovative and promising PES:
- Organizing Project Initiation Support Groups to ensure prompt initiation of PES, including support for regulatory requirements, procedure manuals, data collection forms, and effective participant recruitment and retention plans.
- Organizing interdisciplinary Research Working Groups to guide and assist investigators in conducting their PES, including interpreting results and developing future investigations.
- Connecting PES investigators with UM-OAIC Resource Cores, allied Research Programs, Centers, and Institutes at the University of Maryland Baltimore (UMB) and the larger University System of Maryland, and investigators at other OAICs nationwide who will contribute their intellectual and technical expertise to support and enhance research progress, promote future collaboration, and stimulate career growth.
- Organizing monthly Works-In-Progress meetings utilizing near peer mentoring techniques guided by members of the OAIC Leadership Academy, in collaboration with the Research Education Core (REC).
- Providing structured data and safety monitoring by experienced clinical investigators in aging research, to ensure and monitor adherence to research ethics, safety, privacy, and protection of human participants enrolled in PES, and to monitor and evaluate the progress of these studies.
Funding Opportunities
Funding Opportunities
Pilot Funds
The UM-OAIC is providing funding for two-year pilot projects (3 projects at $30,000 direct costs each). This funding is designed to provide start-up support for quality research proposals of high relevance to the Center's mission which addresses the process by which function is lost, and the multiple factors that affect the onset and progression of disability in older adults.
More Information: Pepper Center.Pilot and REC funding announcement letter 2026.pdf
LOI deadline for pilot funding is October 30, 2026
For More Information
Contact Anne Sullens
Currently Funded Pilot/Exploratory Studies
Currently Funded Pilot/Exploratory Studies
Funded July 1, 2025
Preserving Ability through Virtual Exercise (PAVE): An Intervention to Increase the Physical Activity of Hospitalized
PI: Brittany Burch, PhD, RN
Assistant Professor, Department of Organizational Systems and Adult Health
University of Maryland School of Nursing
Real-World Cognitive Functioning and Older Adults in Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder
PI: Annie Kleykamp, PhD
Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry
University of Maryland School of Medicine
Fatigue and Physical Performance in Older Adults with Long-COVID: A Pilot Study Exploring the Role of Diet and the Gut Microbiome
PI: Galya Bigman, PhD
Assistant Professor, Department of Epidemiology and Public Health
University of Maryland School of Medicine
Funded July 1, 2024
Metabolic Imaging as a Biomarker of Muscle Aging
PI: Sui-Seng Tee, PhD
Assistant Professor, Department of Diagnostic Radiology and Nuclear Medicine
University of Maryland, School of Medicine
Develop machine learning algorithm for a novel MRI biomarker that is highly associated with knee arthroplasty utilizing the Osteoarthritis Initiative database
PI: Stephanie Jo, MD, PhD
Assistant Professor, Department of Diagnostic Radiology and Nuclear Medicine
University of Maryland, School of Medicine
CD38 accelerates frailty and mitochondrial dysfunction in people with HIV (CATCH)
PI: Poonam Mathur, DO, MPH
Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine
University of Maryland, School of Medicine
A Novel Approach to Causal Trajectory Analysis: Identifying Sub-cohorts of ADRD Older
Adults Associated with Poor Post-Fracture Recovery
PI: Chixiang Chen, PhD
Assistant Professor, Department of Epidemiology and Public Health
University of Maryland, School of Medicine
Funded July 1, 2023
Exercise Capacity Improvement in Heart Failure with Preserved Ejection Fraction and Pulmonary Hypertension (PH-HFpEF) after SGLT2 Inhibitor (Empagliflozin) Initiation
PI: Steven Cassady, MD
Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine
University of Maryland, School of Medicine
Time-restricted eating to entrain circadian rhythm, reduce allostatic load, and prevent stressor-induced frailty
PI: Amber Kleckner, PhD
Assistant Professor, Department of Pain and Translational Symptom Science
University of Maryland, School of Nursing
Using Deep Learning to Measure Quantitative Imaging Biomarkers of Body Composition on MRI of the Knee in Older Adults With or At-Risk for Knee Osteoarthritis
PI: Paul Yi, MD
Assistant Professor, Department of Diagnostic Radiology and Nuclear Medicine
University of Maryland, School of Medicine